CAT KILLER FOUND COMPETENT TO STAND TRIAL ::Thursday, April 24::

A Lockport man accused of drowning a cat in a bathtub at Urban Park Towers will be screened for a possible entry into mental health court, after a 3rd competency exam ruled him fit to stand trial. 23 year old Brian Soock pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated cruelty to animals. Soock allegedly drowned his girlfriend's cat in the bathroom of her apartment at 77 Main St. on February 1st. He underwent two exams last month to determine if he is mentally fit to proceed in court. The results of those tests conflicted with each other, so Judge William Watson ordered at third; which proved to be the charm, as it ruled Soock is mentally capable to stand trial. Public defender Michael Ingham said he agreed with the Finding, but asked the judge to allow Soock to be screened for mental health court, which he'll undergo Friday morning. He's currently being held in lieu of $25-thousand bail.

POP everything in the car AND LOCK the doors ::Wednesday, April 23::

Pop and Lock Corporation is apparently crossing Niagara County off its list of places to do business. Company owner Brian Mitchell said Tuesday that he's been unable to find factory space anywhere that's both suitable and readily available. He also spoke very highly of the local government's efforts to accommodate him, but said his options at this point seem exhausted. Pop and Lock is under contract with the U.S. Department of Defense to produce a weapons part beginning this month. The Welland, Ontario auto parts company previously anticipated a $1.2-million local investment and up to 60 jobs in 3 years with relocation. They started looking in Lockport earlier this year after negotiations to purchase a Wheatfield site fell through.

HIGHER COSTS FOR HIGHER KNOWLEDGE AT SANBORN COLLEGE ::Wednesday, April 23::

Tuition for full time resident students at NCCC will go up by $60 a semester in the fall under the school's new budget approved Wednesday morning by the college's board of trustees. The $44.1-million spending plan must still get an OK from the county legislature and they're expected to take it up in early June. The increase for part time resident students will be $5 per credit hour. The proposed budget is $2.4-million more than the current one and includes a request for an additional $177-thousand in support from the county.

LPD STILL ON LOOKOUT FOR SUSPICIOUS MAN ::Wednesday, April 23::

Lockport Police are still looking for a man who reportedly frightened a young girl near Charlotte Cross School on Monday. A spokesman for LPD said the investigation was continuing, but that there wasn't any new information as of yesterday. A man described as being white and in his 20's waved at the girl as he drove by, parked, and got out of his car - according to the police report. The girl ran away and hid while the man look for her, but later drove off. The Lockport School District initiated its emergency calling notification system to inform parents of the incident. The district says that more than 6-thousand phone calls were received, and the response from parents has been mostly positive. A letter was also sent home with students. Superintendent Terry Ann Carbone says quote, "we've gotten good feedback. We needed to do everything in our power to keep kids safe."

"BAD DAY AT WORK JUDGE" AWAITS RESULTS OF FINAL APPEAL :: Tuesday, April 22::

A spokesman for the State Court of Appeals says a decision on whether Niagara Falls judge Robert Restaino can keep his job could come at the end of May or the first week of June. Six judges listened to ral arguments Monday on why Restaino should stay on the bench, despite a 9-1 decision by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct said that he should be removed. Restaino's problems go back to March 2006 when he jailed 46 people because a cell phone rang in his courtroom an no one would take responsibility.

LOCAL THRUWAY AUTHORITY MEMBER WILL BE OUT COME SUMMER :: Tuesday, April 22::

Jeffrey Williams - the Lewiston resident who's a member of the state Thruway Authority board - won't be on much longer. Williams has been informed that when his term ends on June 30, his services will no longer be required. Williams was the only board member to vote against proposed toll hikes, and the only one with enough guts to talk about it. Williams says because of that, he thinks the powers that be wanted him out. Donna Lou of Depew is apparently going to be Williams replacement. She was notified last week that she would be joining the board once she's confirmed by the State Senate.

MAN INJURED AFTER LOSING CONTROL OF TRACTOR :: Tuesday, April 22::

A Sunset Drive man was injured Monday morning when he lost control of his tractor and it rolled over him. 70 year old Stanley Kulak suffered rib, back, and head injuries just before 10 a.m. at his home on the 4-thousand block of Sunset, near Upper Mountain. Kulak was rolling his lawn at the crest of a large drop when the tractor started to roll. Deputies say that before the tractor came to a rest, it rolled on top of Kulak. He was transported by ambulance to ECMC where he remains under observation, where he's expected to recover.

DISABLED MAN SUES THE CITY OF LOCKPORT FOR HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ::Monday, April 21::

A Lock-City man who was left a quadriplegic after falling down a flight of stairs last year now remembers that a police officers pushed him down the stairs, and now he's trying to sue the city for $154-million. However, a police report at the time of the January 14, 2007 incident says that 37 year old Christopher Bower was intoxicated and lost his balance on the stairs. A medical report in the court file says Bower has a history of drug abuse, including inpatient treatment and a toxicology test performed that morning found alcohol and cocaine in his system. Court papers filed by Bower's attorney - David Jay - assert that the head trauma he suffered - along with breaking his neck - robbed him of his memory for months after the fall. Doctors at ECMC placed Bower into a drug induced coma for several days. Bower claims his memory came back in October, but by then had missed the 90 day deadline to serve the city with a notice of claim. State law gives injured parties one year and 90 days after an incident to ask a judge for permission to file a late notice of claim. Jay filed that request last Monday, on the very day the clock would have run out on Bower. Arguments are scheduled for May 8 before Judge Richard Klock, over whether he'll let Bower go ahead with his lawsuit.

"DON'T BURN YOUR BRIDGES" CRY CATARACT CITY CITIZENS ::Monday, April 21::

A planned public rally on deck tomorrow in support of the BRIDGES Child and Adolescent Behavioral Unit will likely result in a meeting of the minds between a group of concerned citizens and officials from Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center. The group has questions about the unit's pending closure, and the hospital says it has answers. One answer may involve Lockport. State health officials have reached out to Lockport Memorial in an effort to fill the community's need for the vital service.

Meantime, representatives from Independent Living of Niagara County - a health services organization that often deals with families impacted by mental health illness - have scheduled the informational rally for Tuesday at the hospital in an effort to draw attention to the pending closure of the BRIDGES unit in the Falls.

COTE FAMILY AWAITS ANNOUNCEMENT AFTER 6TH BODY FOUND IN IRAQ ::Monday, April 21::

The family of Jonathon Cote has been notified by U.S. officials that another body has been found in Iraq. Francis Cote - the father of the former Amherst resident - reports on the family's website that government officials visited his family on Saturday and informed them that a sixth body has been recovered in the Basra area in Southern Iraq. The body will be flown to Dover Air Force Base just as the five other U.S. citizens recovered in March were, where an autopsy will be done and ultimately an identification will be made. Father Francis says at this point there is nothing else to reports, and asks the community to continue praying for Jonathon.

Jonathon Cote is an Army veteran who was working in Iraq as a private security contractor when he and four co-workers were abducted on November 16, 2006. In mid-March, Cote's family learned that the severed fingers of five hostages - including Jonathon's - had been sent to American authorities in Iraq. The bodies of those four co-workers were recovered last month.